Blindsided (28 page)

The answer was, Who cared? All she was interested in was why she didn't care. Why she didn't feel anything. Lucy finished her beer and trotted off to the kitchen for another one. She flopped back on her chair and watched the fire in front of her. What did the only remaining relative do when called in a situation like this? It wasn't that she was stupid. She had just never had death enter her life. She had no grandparents, no aunts, no uncles, no cousins. That meant she was all alone in the world. With her parents gone, so was the last and only buffer between her and her own mortality.

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Fern Michaels
is the
USA Today
and
New York Times
bestselling author of the Sisterhood and Godmothers series,
The Blossom Sisters
,
Tuesday's Child
,
Southern Comfort
,
Betrayal
,
Return to Sender
, and dozens of other novels and novellas. There are over seventy million copies of her books in print. Fern Michaels has built and funded several large day-care centers in her hometown, and is a passionate animal lover who has outfitted police dogs across the country with special bulletproof vests. She shares her home in South Carolina with her four dogs and a resident ghost named Mary Margaret.

 

Visit her website at fernmichaels.com.

 

 

Sometimes, justice is a long time coming. That's the case with Julie Wyatt, whose story strikes close to home for the original founder of the Sisterhood, Myra Rutledge, and her best friend—and fellow Sister—Annie. Julie is convinced her greedy daughter-in-law Darlene had something to do with the mysterious circumstances surrounding her son Larry's death. She desperately wants to get a confession out of Darlene—and to ensure the safety of Larry's daughter, Olivia. As Myra, Annie, and their cohorts dig deeper into Darlene's shady dealings, events unfurl in a way that no one could have predicted, bringing to light the true meaning of loyalty and courage—and the kind of friendship that can create miracles . . .

 

 

The riches that mean most to Teresa “Toots” Loudenberry are the loving friends and family she's accumulated over the course of a life well lived. And now that her daughter, Abby, has married her beau Chris and settled down near Toots in Charleston, life is even more satisfying than the delicious pralines sold at Toots's bakery, The Sweetest Thing.

 

Abby isn't the only one enjoying a little romance. Toots's friendship with Dr. Phil Becker has grown unexpectedly close . . . and that brings both joy and complications. As a distraction, Toots throws herself into helping Abby and Chris open an animal rescue shelter on their plantation. But life takes a serious turn when two young children disappear after visiting The Sweetest Thing. Toots immediately enlists Ida, Sophie, and Mavis to help in the search. But as Sophie's psychic abilities draw them closer to the culprits, they realize the stakes are much higher than they ever could have imagined . . .

 

 

If her abusive husband hadn't tried to kill her and her beloved dog Lucie, Helen Ward might never have left her million-dollar home and run far away. Now Helen's changed her identity and moved across the country, hopeful that she can be safe, happy, maybe even loved. And when she meets college professor Sam Tolliver, she begins to believe fairytales do come true.

 

 

But even with love blossoming and her new online business venture taking off, Helen knows that the past is catching up with her . . . and her fear is growing. Wanting to flee, desperate to get away for good, she'll soon face the biggest decision of her life, a decision that will determine her future and her very identity.

ZEBRA BOOKS are published by

Kensington Publishing Corp.
119 West 40
^th
Street
New York, NY 10018

 

Copyright © 2013 by MRK Productions
Fern Michaels is a registered trademark of First Draft, Inc.

 

This book is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places, and incidents either are products of the author's imagination or are used fictitiously. Any resemblance to actual persons, living or dead, events, or locales is entirely coincidental.

 

All rights reserved. No part of this book may be reproduced in any form or by any means without the prior written consent of the Publisher, excepting brief quotes used in reviews.

 

If you purchased this book without a cover you should be aware that this book is stolen property. It was reported as “unsold and destroyed” to the Publisher and neither the Author nor the Publisher has received any payment for this “stripped book.”

 

Zebra and the Z logo Reg. U.S. Pat. & TM Off.

ISBN: 978-1-4201-3011-9

 

eISBN-13: 978-1-4201-3012-6
eISBN-10: 1-4201-3012-9
First Zebra Books Electronic Edition: January 2014